The Kaban Lakes ( tt-Cyrl, Кабан күле; ) are a system of lakes in

Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering an ...

Republic of Tatarstan The Republic of Tatarstan (russian: Республика Татарстан, Respublika Tatarstan, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə tətɐrˈstan; tt-Cyrl, Татарстан Республикасы), or simply Tatarstan (russian: Татарстан, tt ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

that includes Nizhny (Blizhny) Kaban, Verkhny Kaban, and Sredny Kaban. With a combined area of , they comprise the biggest lake in Tatarstan. The lakes are connected with the

Kazanka River Kazanka (russian: Каза́нка; tt-Cyrl, Казансу, ''Qazansu'') is a river in the Russian Federation, a left tributary of the Volga. The Kazanka begins near the village of Bimeri in Arsk District and flows into the Kuybyshev Reservoir ...

by the

Bolaq The Bolaq ( tt-Cyrl, Болак, translit=Bolaq; russian: Булак, ''Bulak'') is a canal that once flowed from the northern part of Birge Kaban to Kazanka. Today it is an isolated channel in downtown Kazan. The modern length of Bolaq is , an ...

channel and a subterranean channel from Bolaq-Kazansu. They are also connected with the Volga River by the city's sewage system.

The Thousandth Anniversary of Islam Mosque The Thousandth Anniversary of Islam Mosque or The Anniversary Mosque (Russian: Мечеть 1000-летия принятия Ислама, Мечеть Юбилейная – ''Mechet’ 1000-letiya prinyatiya Islama, Mechet’ Yubileynaya'') was ...

is situated on the bank. The medieval

Volga Bulgaria Volga Bulgaria or Volga–Kama Bulgaria, was a historic Bulgar state that existed between the 7th and 13th centuries around the confluence of the Volga and Kama River, in what is now European Russia. Volga Bulgaria was a multi-ethnic state wi ...

ns' graves which date back to 12-13th century were founded on the banks of Arğı Qaban. One legend claims that, in the days before the

Khanate of Kazan The Khanate of Kazan ( tt, Казан ханлыгы, Kazan xanlıgı; russian: Казанское ханство, Kazanskoye khanstvo) was a medieval Tatar Turkic state that occupied the territory of former Volga Bulgaria between 1438 and 1552 ...

fell, the

Khans Khan may refer to: *Khan (inn), from Persian, a caravanserai or resting-place for a travelling caravan *Khan (surname), including a list of people with the name * Khan (title), a royal title for a ruler in Mongol and Turkic languages and used by ...

threw all their valuables into the lakes. Another legend about the origin of the lakes' names claims that, at the

Mongol invasion of Volga Bulgaria The Mongol invasion of Volga Bulgaria lasted from 1223 to 1236. The Bulgar state, centered in lower Volga and Kama, was the center of the fur trade in Eurasia throughout most of its history. Before the Mongol conquest, Russians of Novgoro ...

, the Bulgarian prince ''Qabanbäk'', escaped from

Bilär Bilär (Tatar: Биләр) - was a medieval city in Volga Bulgaria and its second capital before the Mongol invasion of Volga Bulgaria. It was located on the left bank of the Small Cheremshan River in Alexeeyevsky District of the Tatarstan. Th ...

city (or in

Bolghar Bolghar ( tt-Cyrl, Болгар, cv, Пăлхар) was intermittently the capital of Volga Bulgaria from the 8th to the 15th centuries, along with Bilyar and Nur-Suvar. It was situated on the bank of the Volga River, about 30 km downstream ...

), fled to the banks of the lake and built a castle. Another version is that he founded

İske Qazan İske Qazan (literally: ''Old Kazan''; Cyrillic: Иске Казан), was a Bolghar-Tatar city in the 13-16th centuries, situated on the banks of the Qazansu river in the '' Qazan artı'' or ''Zakazanye'' region, in what is today the Russian Fed ...

. Tatar myth also places

Zilant Zilant ( rus, Зилант; tt-Cyrl, җылан , translit=cılan/jılan, lit=snake) is a legendary creature, something between a dragon and a wyvern. Since 1730, it has been the official symbol of Kazan. This winged snake is mentioned in legends ...

, who had been transformed to Diü, as the ruler of the mythological ''Underwater Kingdom of Kaban''. File:Kazan Qaban Lake evening 08-2016 img3.jpg, Cityscape at Lower Kaban File:Frozen_Qaban.jpg, Frozen Kaban from

Kazan State University Kazan (Volga region) Federal University (russian: Казанский (Приволжский) федеральный университет, tt-Cyrl, Казан (Идел буе) федераль университеты) is a public research uni ...

's building File:Qaban, Kamal, Tatenergo.JPG,

Kamal Theatre Kamal may refer to: *Kamal (name), a male given name and surname with multiple origins *Kamal (navigation), a navigational instrument for measuring latitude *Kamal, Jhapa, a rural municipality in Nepal *Alfa Romeo Kamal, an SUV by Alfa Romeo * Ope ...

and Tatenergo office at the Kaban's embankment File:Kazan Qaban Lake evening 08-2016 img4.jpg, Fountain on Lower Kaban

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaban Lakes Kazan Lakes of Tatarstan